Low Life Battery

[tnj8222]

Sounds to me like an old battery, but I don't have too much experience with deep cycle's.

I don't want to hijack the thread, but this seems like a good place to pop in my quick question about this issue. I too would like to put my battery at the front of my raft so I have more leg room. I'm running a 30lb thrust minnkota and I only need to extend my cables another 4' or so, but wiring has always intimidated the heck out of me so I have no idea where to even start to properly extend my wires.

Go get some 6 gauge or so wires cut and splice easy peasy. Its simple as can be.

[HillbillyGeek]

Maybe your battery is just hosed. My deep cycle ran fine for about three years, then the capacity became half of normal. I charged it and had it tested, but the thing never worked like it used to. I have a second battery that's not a deep cycle and it still works fine. It was the backup to the "big boy" and now it runs twice as long!
Conclusion: A buddy gave me the battery for free, so I'm thinking it was just old and worn out.
Not sure if "half life" is normal for a dying battery???

[Lotech Joe]

I just had the battery checked at Oreilly's. It's shot. Looks like another year on the oars.

[BentRod]

....
Conclusion: A buddy gave me the battery for free, so I'm thinking it was just old and worn out.
Not sure if "half life" is normal for a dying battery???

Yes, that is normal. Over time the amount of charge it will hold will continue to diminish. I got a used grp. 27 with my trolling motor and it would hold enough charge to get me to the far side of Pine Lake and almost back......almost. I bought a new grp. 27 marine/RV battery from Costco and it will run me around all day long. I just make sure it goes back on the charger as soon as I get home.
Note: discharging lead acid batteries below 50% charge decreases their life span as does leaving the battery in a discharged state for a long period of time.
I've heard gel or AGM style batteries can withstand repeated full discharge with little ill effect. Not sure what the nature of their lifespan is though as I have not researched buying one yet.

[G-Man]

Maybe your battery is just hosed. My deep cycle ran fine for about three years, then the capacity became half of normal. I charged it and had it tested, but the thing never worked like it used to. I have a second battery that's not a deep cycle and it still works fine. It was the backup to the "big boy" and now it runs twice as long!
Conclusion: A buddy gave me the battery for free, so I'm thinking it was just old and worn out.
Not sure if "half life" is normal for a dying battery???

Get yourself a battery desulfator. If you don't regularly use and charge your battery, it will pay for itself by extending the life and performance of your battery by 2 to 3 times. You don't even need to have one for each battery, just run it for a week at a time as a maintenance function to remove the build-up between the plates. I use the following brand and found it to be trouble free.
http://www.batterytechsolutions.com/desulfator
If you know someone who has a desulfator, ask to borrow it for a couple of weeks and try it on your "shot" battery. If it works, you will have saved yourself some scratch and some rowing.

[Lotech Joe]

Looks like I have a new battery coming for Les Schwab.

[Marc Martyn]

Want to race?[wink]

[rseas]

Hey Lotech Joe, I just IM'd you.